How America got its name

Fernández-Armesto’s, Amerigo: The Man Who Gave His Name to America, is reviewed by Nathaniel Philbrick in the NY Times and it is more interesting than you might think. He concludes:

...

... “History has made him irrelevant,” Fernández-Armesto writes, “to the major resonances of his own name.” Thanks to the ephemerality of Amerigo Vespucci’s reputation as an explorer, America was given an enduring name.
His thesis is that because the man was not particularly important his name did not carry the baggage of Columbus or a name like Columbia. I don't agree, but then I don't think it that important either. What is interesting is how a man with limited talents and accomplishments was able to attach his name to one of the greatest discoveries of all time.

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